1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle including a body frame that tilts in a left-right direction of the vehicle during left and right turns, a left front wheel and a right front wheel that tilt (hereinafter, referred to as “tiltable”) along with the body frame during left and right turns, and a rear wheel that tilts along with the body frame.
2. Description of the Related Art
A vehicle including a body frame that tilts in a left-right direction of the vehicle during left and right turns, and two front wheels disposed side by side in the left-right direction of the body frame is known (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-313876; U.S. Design Pat. No. D547,242S; and Catalogo parti di ricambio, MP3 300 ie LT Mod. ZAPM64102, Piaggio & C. SpA, pp. 76-80). This type of vehicle can turn while the body frame tilts relative to a vertical direction. More specifically, the body frame tilts to the right of the vehicle during a right turn and to the left of the vehicle during a left turn.
The vehicles described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-313876; U.S. Design Pat. No. D547,242S; and Catalogo parti di ricambio include link mechanisms. The link mechanisms each include an upper cross member and a lower cross member. The link mechanism also includes a right-side rod that supports right end portions of the upper cross member and the lower cross member, and a left-side rod that supports left end portions of the upper cross member and the lower cross member. An intermediate portion of the upper cross member and the lower cross member is supported by the body frame. The upper cross member and the lower cross member are supported by the body frame so as to be capable of turning (hereinafter, referred to as “turnable”) around an axis extending substantially in the front-rear direction of the body frame. The upper cross member and the lower cross member turn relative to the body frame in conjunction with tilting of the body frame, and the relative position of the left front wheel and the right front wheel in the up-down direction of the body frame changes. The upper cross member and the lower cross member are disposed above the left front wheel and the right front wheel in the up-down direction of the body frame, when the body frame is in an upright state.
In the conventional vehicle disclosed in Catalogo parti di ricambio, a fuel tank is disposed in a center tunnel positioned between floor portions on which the rider puts his or her left and right feet (for example, see P76 to P80 of Catalogo parti di ricambio and FIG. 3 of U.S. Design Pat. No. D547,242S).
The weight of the fuel tank including the fuel changes depending on the remaining fuel. The center of gravity of the fuel tank also changes depending on the remaining fuel. Therefore, in a general vehicle, the center of gravity of the vehicle changes depending on the remaining fuel during the operation of vehicle.
Meanwhile, downsizing the fuel tank to reduce the weight variation of the fuel tank causes a reduction in the capacity of the fuel tank.